472 jobs lost at TeleTech

Author: Frank Matys

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Frank Matys

TeleTech in 2002 signed a 10-year lease on a 43,000-square-foot building to be owned and managed by the city – at a cost to the municipality of about $3.4 million.

TeleTech will lay off more than 400 staff at its Orillia facility by the end of July, Mayor Ron Stevens has confirmed.
Stevens said he learned of the coming job cuts during a telephone call from the company’s Denver, Co. headquarters on Tuesday morning.
He said that, as of the end of July, the call centre would no longer be fielding calls on behalf of its current client, which “will be leaving and relocated.
“They have also informed us that they have a temporary client in there for awhile to pick up some of the slack, and they are hoping to expand it into a much longer contract,” he said.
TeleTech is in talks with a large company in the hope of securing new work for the Orillia operation, he said.
“Hopefully they are successful in their negations,” Stevens added. “If they are, that client will be moved into that Orillia centre.”
Stevens said he was told 472 people would lose their jobs at the end of July.
“There will be roughly 140 left,” he said.
TeleTech in 2002 signed a 10-year lease on a 43,000 square foot building to be owned and managed by the city – at a cost to the municipality of about $3.4 million.
“They have every intention of trying to keep that centre open,” Stevens added. “They have a very high opinion of the people who work there. It is just an unfortunate situation that they are hoping to be able to resolve by having another client. They feel very hopeful that they can make this happen.”
Stevens attributed the coming job losses to the economic downturn.
“Like any other corporation, their client is an American-based company, and their economy is in pretty dire straits,” he added.
Stevens said he does not regret council’s decision to give TeleTech a break on leasing costs for the city-owned building that houses the local operation.
“Absolutely not,” he added. “I am not going to say that is the end of TeleTech in Orillia. I am very hopeful they will be able to negotiate this thing.”